Supported, titanized chromium catalyst and its use for preparing homopolymers and copolymers of ethylene

ABSTRACT

Novel supported, titanized chromium catalysts for the homopolymerization of ethylene and the copolymerization of ethylene with α-olefins, a process for preparing them and to their use for the polymerization of olefins.

The present invention relates to novel supported, titanized chromiumcatalysts for the homopolymerization of ethylene and thecopolymerization of ethylene with α-olefins, to a process for preparingthem and to their use for the polymerization of olefins.

Homopolymers of ethylene and copolymers of ethylene with higherα-olefins such as 1-butene, 1-pentene, 1-hexene or 1-octene can beprepared using, for example, supported titanium compounds, viz.Ziegler-Natta catalysts, but also using supported chromium compounds,viz. Phillips catalysts. When the homopolymers and copolymers ofethylene are used, for example, for production of blown film, it isimportant that the polymers have a good balance between mechanicalproperties and processability.

It is known that supported chromium catalysts are very suitable forpreparing copolymers of ethylene having good mechanical properties. Theproperties of the polymers obtained in the polymerization depend on theway in which the chromium catalyst used has been prepared, in particularon the type of support material, e.g. its chemical structure, makeup,surface area or pore volume, on the type of chromium compound used, onthe presence of further compounds such as titanium compounds, aluminumalkyls or carbon monoxide, on the order of application of the variouscomponents or on the way in which calcination and activation are carriedout. It is a combination of the starting materials used together withthe specified manner of application to the support which then gives thedesired chromium catalyst for the preparation of polymers which meet therequirements of the specific fields of use.

The supported chromium catalysts are often titanized, i.e. they furthercomprise, in addition to the chromium compound, variable proportions ofa titanium compound by means of which, for example, the molar massdistribution and the HLMI (high load melt index) can be influenced.

Thus, for example, EP-A-882740 describes a process for preparing asupported chromium catalyst, where the support material has a specificsurface area of from 450 to 600 m²/g and firstly the chromium componentand subsequently the titanium component are applied to the supportmaterial, and titanization is carried out at not less than 300° C.

EP-A-882741 teaches that polyethylenes having favorable ultimate tensilestrengths are obtained when using a supported chromium catalyst whosesupport material has a specific surface area of at least 400 m²/g andhas been dehydrated before use. This catalyst is prepared by applyingfirstly the chromium component and then the titanium compound to thesupport.

WO 97/48742 describes polymerization catalysts comprising silica gelshaving a particle size of from 5 to 250 μm, a specific surface area offrom 10 to 1000 m²/g and an AQI (attrition quality index, as a measureof the abrasion resistance) of greater than 10, where the primaryparticles are loosely bound to one another by means of a binder. Activemetal components used can be, inter alia, chromium compounds. However,no information on the preparation of titanized Phillips catalysts isgiven.

Although quite good mechanical properties of the polymers prepared inthis way can be obtained by means of many of the formulation/componentcombinations, problems with parison stability in blown film productionare often observed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide novel ethylenepolymers which have good mechanical properties and display good parisonstability when used in blown film production.

We have found that this object is achieved by a process for preparingsupported, titanized chromium catalysts, which comprises the followingsteps:

-   -   A) bringing a spherical, spray-dried, oxidic support material        into contact with a titanium compound in a suspension,    -   B) bringing the support material which has been treated in this        way into contact with a chromium salt solution in a suspension        and subsequently removing the solvent,    -   C) if desired, calcining the precatalyst obtained in step B) at        above 280° C. in an inert gas atmosphere and subsequently    -   D) activating the precatalyst obtained in step B) or C) at from        500° C. to 800° C. in an oxygen-containing atmosphere.

The invention further provides novel supported, titanized chromiumcatalysts which are suitable for the polymerization of ethylene and, ifdesired, further comonomers and are obtainable by the process of thepresent invention. This novel supported, titanized chromium catalyst forthe homopolymerization of ethylene and the copolymerization of ethylenewith α-olefins will hereinafter, in the interests of brevity, bereferred to as “chromium catalyst of the present invention”.

Accordingly, it has been found that use of the chromium catalysts of thepresent invention makes it possible to obtain homopolymers andespecially copolymers of ethylene which have particularly goodmechanical properties and at the same time display high parisonstability. In addition, the film products obtained display a very lowlevel of specks.

In view of the prior art, it was not to be expected that this measurewould make it possible to achieve the stated objectives of goodmechanical properties together with high parison stability of the filmscomprising the ethylene homopolymers and copolymers of the presentinvention.

The invention also provides a process for preparing homopolymers ofethylene and copolymers of ethylene with α-olefins by polymerization ofethylene or mixtures of ethylene and α-olefins using at least onechromium catalyst of the present invention, provides the homopolymersand copolymers of ethylene obtainable therefrom and provides for theiruse for producing films.

An essential constituent of the chromium catalyst of the presentinvention is the spherical, spray-dried, oxidic support material.

The spherical, spray-dried, oxidic support material, hereinafterreferred to in the interests of simplicity as support material, isusually a porous, inorganic solid which may contain hydroxyl groups.Examples of such solids, which are known to those skilled in the art,are aluminum oxide, silicon dioxide (silica gel), titanium dioxide ormixed oxides thereof, or aluminum phosphate. Further suitable supportmaterials can be obtained by modifying the pore surface with, forexample, compounds of the elements boron (BE-A-61,275), aluminum (U.S.Pat. No. 4,284,527), silicon (EP-A 0 166 157) or phosphorus (DE-A 36 35715). Preference is given to using a silica gel.

The preferred support material is produced, for example, by spray dryingmilled, appropriately sieved hydrogels which for this purpose are mixedwith water or an aliphatic alcohol. The primary particles are porous,granular particles of the appropriately milled and sieved hydrogelhaving a mean particle diameter of from 1 to 20 μm, preferably from 1 to5 μm. Preference is given to using milled and sieved SiO₂ hydrogels.

In general, the mean particle size of the support particles is in therange from 10 to 1000 μm, preferably in the range from 20 to 120 μm andparticularly preferably in the range from 30 to 100 μm.

The pore volume of the support material used is in the range from 0.5 to3 ml/g, preferably from 1 to 2 ml/g and particularly preferably from 1to 1.6 ml/g.

Furthermore, it is advantageous according to the present invention forthe support particles to have a specific surface area of from 50 to 600m²/g. If support particles having a lower specific surface area areused, the catalytic activity of the chromium catalysts concerned isgenerally reduced. On the other hand, chromium catalysts based onsupport gel particles having a specific surface area of >600 m²/gusually have a comparatively low abrasion resistance. Preference isgiven to support gel particles having a specific surface area of from300 to 600 m²/g, particularly preferably from 300 to 550 m²/g.

The specific surface area and the mean pore volume are determined bynitrogen adsorption using the BET method as described, for example, byS. Brunauer, P. Emmett and E. Teller in Journal of the American ChemicalSociety, 60, (1939), pages 209-319.

In addition, the support particles used according to the presentinvention have a mean pore diameter of from 80 to 250 Å, preferably from90 to 210 Å and particularly preferably from 95 to 200 Å. The mean porediameter in Å is calculated by dividing the numerical value of the meanpore volume (in cm³/g) by the numerical value of the specific area (inm²/g) and multiplying this figure by 40,000.

The production and properties of suitable support materials isdescribed, for example, in WO 97/48743 and the documents cited therein.Suitable support materials are also commercially available.

Before use in the process of the present invention, the support materialcan also be partially or fully modified. The support material can, forexample, be treated at from 200 to 1000° C. under oxidizing ornonoxidizing conditions, if desired in the presence of fluorinatingagents, for example ammonium hexafluorosilicate. In this way, it ispossible, inter alia, to vary the water and/or OH content. The supportmaterial is preferably dried at from 100 to 200° C. under reducedpressure for from 1 to 10 hours before use in the process of the presentinvention.

In step A), the support material is brought into contact with a titaniumcompound in a suspension. As titanium compound, preference is given tousing a tetravalent compound of the formula (RO)_(n)X_(4-n)Ti, where theradicals R are identical or different and are each an organosilicon orcarboorganic substituent having from 1 to 20 carbon atoms, e.g. alinear, branched or cyclic C₁-C₂₀-alkyl such as methyl, ethyl, n-propyl,isopropyl, n-butyl, sec-butyl, isobutyl, tert-butyl, n-pentyl,sec-pentyl, isopentyl, n-hexyl, cyclohexyl, n-heptyl and n-octyl, aC₆-C₁₈-aryl such as phenyl, 1-naphthyl, 2-naphthyl, 1-anthryl,2-anthryl, 9-anthryl and 1-phenanthryl or a trialkylsilyl such astrimethylsilyl or triethylsilyl. R is preferably a linear or branchedC₁-C₆-alkyl such as methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, isopropyl, n-butyl,sec-butyl, isobutyl, tert-butyl, n-pentyl or n-hexyl. Possible radicalsX are halogens such as fluorine, chlorine, bromine or iodine, preferablychlorine. n is from 0 to 4, preferably 4. The titanium compound ispreferably soluble in the suspension medium, for which reason preferenceis given to using titanium tetraalkoxides since they have goodsolubilities in a great number of solvents. Suitable suspension mediaare, in particular, C₄-C₈-alkanes such as isobutane, isopentane,n-pentane, n-hexane, n-heptane or n-octane.

It is usual to slurry the support material with the suspension mediumand then to add the titanium compound. However, it is also possible, forexample, to dissolve the titanium compound in the suspension medium andsubsequently to add this to the support material. The support materialis preferably slurried with the suspension medium and, if desired, anacid, preferably a C₁-C₆-carboxylic acid such as formic acid or aceticacid, particularly preferably formic acid, for from 10 to 120 minutesbefore addition of the titanium compound.

In general, the loading of the support material is carried out in aweight ratio of support gel particles:Ti of from 100:0.1 to 100:12, inparticular from 100:1 to 100:6.

Reaction step A) can be carried out at from 0 to 100° C. For costreasons, room temperature is preferred. Before the subsequent step B),all or some of the solvent and/or the acid can be distilled off. Thetitanized support from step A) is preferably isolated and largely freedof the suspension medium and acid before being reacted further.

In reaction step B), the intermediate obtained from A) is brought intocontact with a chromium salt solution in a suspension and the solvent issubsequently removed.

Examples of suitable chromium compounds are chromium trioxide andchromium hydroxide and also salts of trivalent chromium with organic andinorganic acids, e.g. chromium acetate, chromium oxalate, chromiumsulfate and chromium nitrate, and chelates of trivalent chromium, e.g.chromium acetylacetonate. Among these, very particular preference isgiven to using chromium(III) nitrate nonahydrate and chromiumacetylacetonate.

The intermediate obtained from A) is preferably brought into contactwith the chromium compound in water or methanol. Here, the chromiumcomponent is preferably dissolved in water or methanol and subsequentlymixed with the intermediate from A). The reaction time is from 10minutes to 5 hours.

In general, the loading of the intermediate is carried out in a weightratio of support gel particles:chromium of from 100:0.1 to 100:10, inparticular from 100:0.3 to 100:3.

The solvent is subsequently removed, preferably at from 20 to 150° C.and pressures of from 10 mbar to 1 mbar. The precatalyst obtained inthis way can be completely dry or can have a certain residual moisturecontent. However, the volatile constituents should make up no more than20% by weight, in particular no more than 10% by weight, of the stillnot activated chromium-containing precatalyst.

The precatalyst obtained from reaction step B) can be subjectedimmediately to step D) or else can be calcined beforehand in awater-free inert gas atmosphere at above 280° C. in step C). Thecalcination is preferably carried out at from 280 to 800° C. in afluidized bed of from 10 to 1000 minutes.

The intermediate obtained in this way from step B) or C) is thenactivated under oxidizing conditions in step D), for example in anoxygen-containing atmosphere at from 400 to 1000° C. The intermediateobtained from step B) or C) is preferably activated directly in thefluidized bed by replacing the inert gas by an oxygen-containing gas andincreasing the temperature to the activation temperature. Theintermediate is advantageously heated at from 400 to 1000° C., inparticular from 500 to 800° C., in a water-free gas stream containingmore than 10% by volume of oxygen for from 10 to 1000 minutes, inparticular from 150 to 750 minutes, and then cooled to room temperature,resulting in the Phillips catalyst to be used according to the presentinvention. The maximum temperature of the activation is below,preferably at least 20-100° C. below, the sintering temperature of theintermediate from step B) or C). This oxidation can also be carried outin the presence of suitable fluorinating agents, for example ammoniumhexafluorosilicate.

The chromium catalyst of the present invention advantageously has achromium content of from 0.1 to 5% by weight, in particular from 0.3 to2% by weight, and a titanium content of from 0.5 to 10% by weight, inparticular from 1 to 5% by weight.

The catalyst systems of the present invention display a short inductiontime in the polymerization of 1-alkenes. The resulting chromium catalystto be used according to the present invention can also be reduced insuspension or in the gas phase, for example by means of ethylene and/orα-olefins, carbon monoxide or triethylborane, before use or it can bemodified by silylation. The molar ratio of reducing agent to chromium(of the chromium catalyst of the present invention to be reduced) isusually in the range from 0.05:1 to 500:1, preferably from 0.1:1 to50:1, in particular from 0.5:1 to 5.0:1.

In suspension, the reduction temperature is generally in the range from10 to 200° C., preferably in the range from 10 to 100° C., and thepressure is in the range from 0.1 to 500 bar, preferably in the rangefrom 1 to 200 bar.

The reduction temperature in the fluidized-bed method is usually in therange from 10 to 1000° C., preferably from 10 to 800° C., in particularfrom 10 to 600° C. The gas-phase reduction is generally carried out in apressure range from 0.1 to 500 bar, preferably in the range from 1 to100 bar and in particular in the range from 5 to 20 bar.

In the gas-phase reduction, the chromium catalyst to be reduced isgenerally fluidized in a fluidized-bed reactor by means of an inertcarrier gas stream, for example nitrogen or argon. The carrier gasstream is usually laden with the reducing agent, in which case reducingagents which are liquid under normal conditions preferably have a vaporpressure of at least 1 mbar.

The chromium catalyst of the present invention is very well suited tothe preparation of homopolymers of ethylene and copolymers of ethylenewith α-olefins at from 20 to 300° C. and pressures of from 5 to 400 barin the customary processes known for the polymerization of olefins, forexample, solution processes, suspension processes in a stirringautoclave or loop reactor, stirred gas phase or gas-phase fluidized-bedprocesses, which can be carried out continuously or batchwise. Theadvantageous pressure and temperature ranges for carrying out theprocess therefore depend greatly on the polymerization method.

In particular, temperatures of from 50 to 150° C., preferably from 70 to120° C., and pressures generally in the range from 1 to 400 bar areemployed in these polymerization processes. As solvents or suspensionmedia, it is possible to use inert hydrocarbons such as isobutane orelse the monomers themselves, for example higher olefins such aspropene, butene or hexene in the liquefied or liquid state. The solidscontent of the suspension is generally in the range from 10 to 80% byweight. The polymerization can be carried out either batchwise, e.g. instirring autoclaves, or continuously, e.g. in tube reactors, preferablyin loop reactors. In particular, the Phillips PF process as described inU.S. Pat. No. 3,242,150 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,248,179 can be employed.

Among the abovementioned polymerization processes, gas-phasepolymerization, particularly in gas-phase fluidized-bed reactors, ispreferred according to the present invention. It has been found thatdespite the various processing steps and the spray-dried supportmaterials, no fine dust is formed during gas-phase polymerization. Ingeneral, the gas-phase polymerization is carried out at a temperaturewhich is at least a few degrees below the softening temperature of thepolymer. The gas-phase polymerization can also be carried out in thecondensed, supercondensed or supercritical mode.

If desired, different or like polymerization processes can also beconnected in series so as to form a polymerization cascade. However, theparticular catalyst composition makes it possible to obtain the polymersof the present invention easily from a single reactor.

Examples of suitable α-olefins which can be copolymerized with ethyleneare monoolefins and diolefins having from three to 15 carbon atoms inthe molecule. Well suited α-olefins of this type are propene, 1-butene,1-pentene, 1-hexene, 1-octene, 1-decene, 1-dodecene and 1-pentadeceneand also the conjugated and nonconjugated diolefins butadiene,1,3-pentadiene, 2,3-dimethylbutadiene, 1,4-pentadiene, 1,5-hexadiene andvinylcyclohexene. It is possible to use mixtures of these comonomers.Preference is given to using 1-butene, 1-hexene or 1-octene, inparticular 1-hexene.

To control the molar mass, it is advantageous to add hydrogen asregulator in the polymerization.

It has been found to be advantageous to carry out the polymerization ofthe 1-alkenes using the catalysts of the present invention in thepresence of organometallic compounds of the first, second, third orfourth main group or of the second transition group of the PeriodicTable of the Elements. Useful compounds of this type are homolepticC₁-C₁₀-alkyls of lithium, boron, aluminum or zinc, e.g. n-butyllithium,triethylborane, trimethylaluminum, triethylaluminum,triisobutylaluminum, tributylaluminum, trihexylaluminum,trioctylaluminum and diethylzinc. C₁-C₁₀-Dialkylaluminum alkoxides suchas diethylaluminum ethoxide are also well suited. It is also possible touse dimethylaluminum chloride, methylaluminum dichloride, methylaluminumsesquichloride or diethylaluminum chloride. Particular preference isgiven to n-butyllithium as organometallic compound. Mixtures of theabove-described organometallic compounds are generally also useful, withthe mixing ratio not being critical.

The molar ratio of organometallic compound:chromium is usually in therange from 0.1:1 to 50:1, preferably in the range from 1:1 to 50:1.However, since many of the activators, e.g. aluminum alkyls, are alsoused at the same time for removing catalyst poisons (used asscavengers), the amount used depends on the level of impurities in theother starting materials. However, the optimum amount can easily bedetermined by a person skilled in the art by means of simple tests.

The chromium catalysts of the present invention can also be used in theabove polymerization processes together with another catalyst suitablefor the polymerization of α-olefins. The chromium catalyst of thepresent invention is preferably used together with another supportedchromium catalyst customary for the polymerization of α-olefins. The useof two different supported chromium catalysts is described, for example,in WO 92/17511. Two or more of the chromium catalysts of the presentinvention can also be used simultaneously in the polymerization. Thepolymerization is particularly preferably carried out using a chromiumcatalyst of the present invention together with a supported,nontitanized chromium catalyst which can be prepared by a process inwhich a spherical, spray-dried support material is treated according tothe above-described steps B) to D). The preferred embodiments of thisnontitanized, supported chromium catalyst are usually analogous to thosefor the titanized chromium catalyst of the present invention. Theactivation of the two catalysts can be carried out separately orjointly. The ratio of nontitanized to titanized chromium catalyst is inthe range from 3:1 to 1:3, preferably from 2:1 to 1:3 and particularlypreferably from 1:1 to 1:2. Preference is given to firstly mixing thetwo catalysts and then activating them jointly. This combination givesparticularly advantageous film products displaying good parisonstabilities and good mechanical properties. Mixtures of titanized andnontitanized supported chromium catalysts are described, for example, inU.S. Pat. No. 3,798,202, but here the titanization is carried out onlyafter the chromium component has been applied to a support. Such anorder does not display the advantages according to the present inventionfor the present support materials.

The two different Phillips catalysts, namely the titanized chromiumcatalyst and the nontitanized chromium catalyst, can, before they comeinto contact with the monomer, be mixed and then introduced into thereactor together, or they can be metered into the reactor separately,for example at a plurality of points.

The homopolymers and copolymers of ethylene obtained according to thepresent invention usually have a density, measured in accordance withDIN 53479, in the range from 0.9 to 0.97 g/cm³, preferably in the rangefrom 0.92 to 0.96 g/cm³ and particularly preferably in the range from0.925 to 0.945 g/cm³ and a melt flow index MFI (190° C./2.16 kg) in therange from 0 to 10 g/10 min, preferably in the range from 0.01 to 1 g/10min and particularly preferably in the range from 0.05 to 0.6 g/10 min,and a high load melt index HLMI (190° C./21.6 kg) in the range from 1 to50 g/10 min, preferably in the range from 3 to 30 g/10 min andparticularly preferably in the range from 5 to 25 g/10 min, in each casemeasured in accordance with DIN 53735 under different loads (inbrackets).

The weight average molar mass M_(w) is generally in the range from10,000 to 7,000,000 g/mol, preferably in the range from 100,000 to500,000 g/mol. The molar mass distribution M_(w)/M_(n), measured by theGPC (gel permeation chromatography) method at 135° C. in1,2,4-trichlorobenzene against a polyethylene standard, is usually inthe range from 3 to 50, preferably in the range from 8 to 30 andparticularly preferably in the range from 15 to 30.

In general, the ethylene polymers produced in the reactor are melted andhomogenized in an extruder. The melt flow index and the density of theextrudate can then be different from the corresponding parameters of thecrude polymer, but continue to lie in the range according to the presentinvention.

The olefin polymerization in which the catalyst prepared according tothe present invention is used can be employed to prepare homopolymers ofethylene or copolymers of ethylene with up to 10% by weight of acomonomer having from 3 to 12 carbon atoms. Preferred copolymers containfrom 0.3 to 1.5 mol % of hexene, based on the polymer, and particularlypreferably from 0.5 to 1 mol % of hexene.

The ethylene copolymer of the present invention can also form mixtureswith other olefin polymers, in particular homopolymers and copolymers ofethylene. These mixtures can, on the one hand, be prepared by theabove-described simultaneous polymerization using a plurality ofchromium catalysts. On the other hand, these mixtures can also beobtained simply by subsequent blending of the polymers of the presentinvention with other homopolymers or copolymers of ethylene. Preferenceis given to mixtures of which one part can be prepared by polymerizationusing a chromium catalyst according to the present invention and thesecond part can be prepared by polymerization using a supported,nontitanized chromium catalyst which can be prepared by a processcomprising the steps B) to D). MFI, HLMI, density, comonomer content,M_(w) and M_(w)/M_(n) of these mixtures are preferably likewise in therange of the polymers which are prepared using only one of thetitanium-containing chromium catalysts of the present invention.

The ethylene copolymers, polymer mixtures and blends can also furthercomprise auxiliaries and/or additives known per se, for exampleprocessing stabilizers, stabilizers against the action of light andheat, customary additives such as lubricants, antioxidants, antiblockingagents and antistatics, and also possibly colorants. A person skilled inthe art will be familiar with the types and amounts of these additives.

The polymers of the present invention can also be modified afterwards bygrafting, crosslinking, hydrogenation, functionalization or othermodification reactions known to those skilled in the art.

The polymers of the present invention are very suitable for, forexample, producing films on blown film plants at high outputs. Filmscomprising the polymers of the present invention have good mechanicalproperties. Also notable is the high parison stability in production ofblown films.

The films obtained in this way are particularly suitable for thepackaging sector and for heavy duty sacks and also for the food sector.Furthermore, the films display only a low tendency to blocking and cantherefore be handled by machine even without or with only smalladditions of lubricants and antiblocking agents.

The Phillips catalyst of the present invention has particular unexpectedadvantages. It is very suitable for the homopolymerization andcopolymerization of ethylene by the customary and known particle formprocess in a gas-phase fluidized-bed polymerization. Here, it gives,with high productivity, (co)polymers of excellent morphology and goodprocessability having melt flow indices of from 0 to 1 g/10 min, highload melt flow indices of from 1 to 50 g/10 min and melt flow ratios(HLMI/MI) of from 50 to 200. These (co)polymers display only very slightswelling on leaving the extruder die in blown film production. The(co)polymers prepared by means of the Phillips catalyst of the presentinvention are therefore particularly suitable for blown film productionand blow molding.

The following examples illustrate the invention.

The productivity of the catalyst P/C refers to the amount of polymerisolated per amount of Phillips catalyst used in g.

The comonomer content of the ethylene/1-alkene copolymers (% C₆), theirmethyl side chain content per 1000 carbon atoms of the polymer chain(CH₃/1000) and their density were determined by IR spectroscopy.

The eta value was determined by means of an automatic Ubbelohdeviscometer (Lauda PVS 1) using decalin as solvent at 130° C. (ISO 1628at 130° C., 0.001 g/ml of decalin).

The determination of the molar mass distributions and the means M_(n),M_(w), and M_(w)/M_(n) derived therefrom was carried out by means ofhigh-temperature gel permeation chromatography using a method based onDIN 55672, under the following conditions: solvent:1,2,4-trichlorobenzene, flow: 1 ml/min, temperature: 135° C.,calibration using PE standards.

The Dyna value was determined in accordance with DIN 53373.

The HLMI was determined in accordance with ISO 1133.

The dart drop value was determined in accordance with ASTM D12709/A.

The density was determined in accordance with ISO 1183.

Abbreviations Used in the Following Tables:

T Temperature during the polymerizationM_(w) weight average molar massM_(n) Number average molar massEt_(a) viscosityDensity Polymer density Mw Weight average molar mass [sic]HLMI Melt flow index at 190° C. and 21.6 kgMI Melt flow index at 190° C. and 21.16 kg% C₆ Comonomer content of the polymer

EXAMPLES AND COMPARATIVE EXPERIMENTS Example 1 Preparation of a CatalystAccording to the Present Invention

The support used was a spray-dried silica gel having a BET surface areaof 520 m²/g and a pore volume of 1.26 ml/g.

Such support materials are commercially available from, for example,Grace under the trade name Sylopol® 2101. 15 kg of the silica gel weredried at 130° C. under reduced pressure (<10 mbar) for 7 h. Aftercooling, a solution of 0.5 l of formic acid in 40 l of heptane was addedand the mixture was stirred for 30 minutes. 3.9 l of titaniumtetraisopropoxide were subsequently added while stirring. After onehour, the solvent was distilled off. The (titanized) support wassubsequently admixed with a solution of 600 g of chromium nitrate(Cr(NO₃)₃.9H₂O) in 20 l of ethanol, the mixture was stirred for one hourand the solvent as then distilled off. The precatalyst obtained in thisway contained 0.5% by weight of chromium and 3.6% by weight of titanium.

The precatalyst was activated in a gas-phase fluidized bed. In thisactivation procedure, it was heated to the desired final temperature of650° C. while being fluidized by means of air. The final temperature washeld for 10 hours, the gas was subsequently changed back to nitrogen andthe catalyst was cooled.

Examples 2 and 3 Gas-Phase Polymerization

The polymerization was carried out in a fluidized-bed reactor having adiameter of 0.5 m. The reactor temperature is indicated in Table 1 andthe pressure in the reactor was 21 bar. The reactor gas had thefollowing composition: 56% by volume of ethene, 2% by volume of hexaneand the % by volume of 1-hexene indicated in Table 1. The nitrogencontent (in % by volume) can thus be calculated simply as 42 minus theamount of hexene (in % by volume) indicated in Table 1. The catalystused was that obtained as described in Example 1.

TABLE 1 C6² Activity HLMI [% by T [g PE/ [g/10 Eta Density M_(w) M_(w)/Ex. volume] [° C.] g cat] min] [dl/g] [g/cm³] [g/mol] M_(n) 2 0.77 1065871 12.5 3.4 0.9319 335247 23.6 3 0.77 105.3 5767 10.0 3.0 0.9325282470 23.6 ¹All data or polymer properties are based on the polymerobtained directly from the polymerization ²% by volume of hexene in thereactor

Comparative Example C1

The support used was the granular silica gel Sylopol® 332 from Gracehaving a BET surface area of 325 m²/g and a pore volume of 1.79 ml/g. 18kg of the silica gel were admixed with a solution of 280 g of chromiumnitrate in 30 l of methanol and the solvent was distilled off. Theprecatalyst obtained in this way contains 0.2% by weight of chromium.

This precatalyst was calcined in a gas-phase fluidized bed. In thiscalcination, the fluidized bed was heated to the final temperature of700° C., this temperature was held for 10 hours, the gas wassubsequently changed back to nitrogen and the catalyst was cooled. Thepolymerization was carried out in the gas phase by a method analogous toExamples 2 and 3 using 0.32% by volume of hexene at 110° C.

Comparative Example C2

As precatalyst, use was made of the commercially available catalyst EP350 HiTi (Grace), namely a granular silica gel containing 1% by weightof chromium and 3% by weight of titanium and having a BET surface areaof 502 m²/g and a pore volume of 1.95 ml/g.

The precatalyst was calcined in a gas-phase fluidized bed. In thiscalcination, the fluidized bed was heated to the final temperature of575° C., this temperature was held for 10 hours, the gas wassubsequently changed back to nitrogen and the catalyst was cooled. Thepolymerization was carried out in the gas phase by a method analogous toExamples 2 and 3 using 0.32% by volume of hexene at 109° C.

Comparative Example C3

The support used was the spray-dried silica gel from Example 1 having aBET surface area of 520 m²/g and a pore volume of 1.26 ml/g. 18 kg ofthe silica gel were admixed with a solution of 420 g of chromium nitratein 23 l of methanol and the solvent was distilled off. The precatalystobtained in this way contained 0.3% by weight of chromium.

The precatalyst was calcined in a gas-phase fluidized bed. In thiscalcination, the fluidized bed was heated to the final temperature of750° C., this temperature was held for 2 hours, the gas was subsequentlychanged back to nitrogen and the catalyst was cooled. The polymerizationwas carried out in the gas phase by a method analogous to Examples 2 and3 using 0.33% by volume of hexene at 107.4° C.

Comparative Example C4

The precatalyst was prepared by a method analogous to ComparativeExample C3.

The precatalyst was calcined in a gas-phase fluidized bed. In thiscalcination, the fluidized bed was heated to the final temperature of750° C., this temperature was held for 10 hours, the gas wassubsequently changed back to nitrogen and the catalyst was cooled. Thepolymerization was carried out in the gas phase by a method analogous toExamples 2 and 3 using 0.39% by volume of hexene at 107.5° C.

Comparative Example C5

The support used was a spray-dried silica gel having a BET surface areaof 310 m²/g and a pore volume of 1.54 ml/g. 18 kg of the silica gel wereadmixed with a solution of 720 g of chromium nitrate in 23 l of methanoland the solvent was distilled off. A solution of 3.5 l of titaniumisopropoxide in 20 l of heptane were subsequently added while stirring.After one hour, the solvent was distilled off. The precatalyst obtainedin this way contained 0.5% by weight of chromium and 3% by weight oftitanium.

The precatalyst was calcined in a gas-phase fluidized bed. In thiscalcination, the fluidized bed was heated to the final temperature of750° C., this temperature was held for 2 hours, the gas was subsequentlychanged back to nitrogen and the catalyst was cooled. The polymerizationwas carried out in the gas phase by a method analogous to Examples 2 and3 using 0.9% by volume of hexene at 105.8° C. The catalyst led to lumpsand deposits in the reactor during the polymerization.

Example 4 Preparation of a Catalyst According to the Present Invention

The support used was a spray-dried silica gel (see C5) having a BETsurface area of 310 m²/g and a pore volume of 1.54 ml/g.

18 kg of the silica gel were dried at 130° C. under reduced pressure(<10 mbar) for 7 h. After cooling, a solution of 3.5 l of titaniumisopropoxide in 20 l of heptane was added. After one hour, the solventwas distilled off. The (titanized) support was subsequently admixed witha solution of 720 g of chromium nitrate (Cr(NO₃)₃.9H₂O) in 23 l ofmethanol, the mixture was stirred for one hour and the solvent was thendistilled off. The precatalyst obtained in this way contained 0.5% byweight of chromium and 3% by weight of titanium.

The precatalyst was calcined in a gas-phase fluidized bed. In thiscalcination, the fluidized bed was heated to the final temperature of750° C., this temperature was held for 2 hours, the gas was subsequentlychanged back to nitrogen and the catalyst was cooled. The polymerizationwas carried out in the gas phase by a method analogous to Examples 2 and3 using 0.9% by volume of hexene at 105.7° C. The catalyst did not leadto lumps and deposits in the reactor during the polymerization.

Film Production Comparative Examples C1 to C4, C6 and Example 2

For comparison, granulated PE powders which had been prepared using thecatalysts of the present invention and those not according to thepresent invention were processed to produce films. The ethylenecopolymers from Examples 2 and C1 to C4 were used. In addition, acommercial product (Finathene HF513=Comparative Example C6) wasprocessed in the same way. Table 2 below gives an overview of theproperties of the granulated PE products.

Granulation was carried out on a ZSK 40 extruder (Werner & Pfleiderer).As stabilizers, 500 ppm of Irganox® 1076 and 1000 ppm of Irgaphos® 168(Ciba) were added to the PE batches. The temperature of the PE melt(melt temperature) was 200° C. at a throughput of 100 kg/h.

Film production was carried out on a film blowing machine fromWindmoller and Holscher using the following settings: die diameter: 100mm, die gap: 1.2 mm, melt temperature: 225° C., a melt pressurecorresponding to Table 2, blow ratio: 1:4, neck length: 900 mm, filmthickness: 20 μm. The polymer throughput was 50 kg/h.

The polymers of the present invention produce a low melt pressurebuildup at the extrusion die of the film blowing machine, display verygood parison stability and the films have a significantly reduced levelof specks.

In film production using the polymer from Example 2, a film having athickness of 5 μm could be produced without pumping of the parison at ablow ratio of 1:5 and an offtake speed of 110 m/s.

TABLE 2 % C6² HLMI Eta Density [% by M_(w) Ex. [g/10 min] [dl/g] [g/cm³]weight] [g/mol] M_(w)/M_(n) 2 17.5 2.83 0.9328 4.5 265782 23.8 C1 14.03.3 0.9341 3.5 245154 10.9 C2 15.4 3.62 0.9364 2.9 294577 19.4 C3 13.93.21 0.9343 3.1 266769 11.4 C4 16.6 2.83 0.9338 2.9 300726 17.1 C6 14.52.9 0.9337 4.4 317716 20 Speck topogr. Dart drop Melt 20-50 50-100100-200 impact Dyna Ex. pressure μm μm μm [g] [Nm/mm] 2 344 9 0 0 16710.1 C1 377 86 9 0 144 7.7 C2 376 8 2 1 155 9.8 C3 409 3 0 0 200 11.9 C4350 36 3 0 160 10.1 C6 370 59 7 0 200 12 ¹All polymer property data arebased on the granulated polymer ²C₆ = 1-hexene incorporated into thepolymer ³Specks per m² of film, the sizes of which were determinedmicroscopically

Example 5

Example 4 was repeated using 3.47 l of titanium tetraisopropoxide in 28l of heptane and 1443 g of chromium nitrate (Cr(NO₃)₃.9H₂O) in 25 l ofmethanol. The precatalyst obtained in this way contained 1% by weight ofCr and 3% by weight of Ti.

The calcination was likewise carried out by a method analogous toExample 4, but at 580° C.

The polymerization was carried out in the gas phase in a manneranalogous to Examples 2 and 3 using 0.7% by volume of hexene at 107° C.This gave a polymer having a density of 0.936 g/cm³ (3.8% by weight ofC6 in the polymer), an HLMI of 15.7 g/10 min, an eta value of 2.63 dl/g,an M_(w) of 238 732 g/mol, an M_(w)/M_(n) of 22.03, from which a filmwas produced in a manner corresponding to the previous examples. Themelt pressure during extrusion was 328. The film had a Dyna value of 8Nm/mm and a dart drop impact strength of 160 g.

Example 6

Example 4 was repeated, but only 720 g of chromium nitrate(Cr(NO₃)₃.9H₂O) in 25 l of methanol were used and no titaniumtetraisoproproxide was added. The precatalyst obtained in this waycontained 0.5% by weight of Cr.

This catalyst was mixed in a ratio of 1:1 with the catalyst from Example5. The calcination of the mixture obtained in this way was likewisecarried out by a method analogous to Example 4, but at 550° C.

The polymerization was carried out in the gas phase in a manneranalogous to Examples 2 and 3 using 0.98% by volume of hexene at 105.4°C. This gave a polymer having a density of 0.9324 g/cm³ (4.9% by weightof C6 in the polymer), an HLMI of 9.2 g/10 min, an eta value of 3.06dl/g, an M_(w) of 324 844 g/mol, an M_(w)/M_(n) of 26.45, from which afilm was produced in a manner corresponding to the previous examples.The melt pressure during extrusion was 386. The film had a Dyna value of12.4 Nm/mm and a dart drop impact of 197 g.

1-11. (canceled)
 12. A homopolymer of ethylene or a copolymer ofethylene with α-olefins obtained by a process comprising polymerizingethylene or mixtures of ethylene and α-olefins in the presence of atleast one supported, titanized chromium catalyst obtained by a processcomprising: A) bringing a spherical, spray-dried, oxidic supportmaterial into contact with a titanium compound in a suspension, B)bringing the support material which has been treated in this way intocontact with a chromium salt solution in a suspension and subsequentlyremoving the solvent, C) if desired, calcining the precatalyst obtainedin step B) at above 280° C. in an inert gas atmosphere and subsequentlyD) activating the precatalyst obtained in step B) or C) at from 500° C.to 800° C. in an oxygen-containing atmosphere.
 13. A homopolymer orcopolymer of ethylene with α-olefins obtained by a process comprisingpolymerizing ethylene or mixtures of ethylene and α-olefins in thepresence of at least one supported, titanized chromium catalyst obtainedby a process comprising: A) bringing a spherical, spray-dried, oxidicsupport material into contact with a titanium compound in a suspension,B) bringing the support material which has been treated in this way intocontact with a chromium salt solution in a suspension and subsequentlyremoving the solvent, C) if desired, calcining the precatalyst obtainedin step B) at above 280° C. in an inert gas atmosphere and subsequentlyD) activating the precatalys obtained in step B) or C) at from 500° C.to 800° C. in an oxygen-containing atmosphere, wherein said homopolymeror copolymer has an HLMI of from 1 to 50 g/10 min, an MFI (190° C./2.16kg) of from 0 to 10 g/10 min, a density of from 0.9 to 0.97 g/cm³ and amolar mass distribution M_(w)/M_(n) in the range from 3 to
 50. 14. Amethod for the production of films comprising utilizing a homopolymer orcopolymer of ethylene as claimed in claim
 12. 15. A film comprising ahomopolymer or copolymer of ethylene as claimed in claim
 12. 16. Aprocess for the production of films, said process comprising extrudingin blown film production the homopolymer or copolymer of claim
 12. 17.The homopolymer or copolymer of ethylene of claim 12, wherein thepolymerization is carried out in the presence of a supported, titanizedchromium catalyst and a supported, nontitanized chromium catalyst whichcan be prepared by a process in which a spherical, spray-dried supportmaterial is treated as described in steps B) to D).
 18. The homopolymeror copolymer of ethylene of claim 12, wherein the polymerization iscarried out in the gas phase.
 19. A method for the production of filmscomprising utilizing a homopolymer or copolymer of ethylene as claimedin claim
 13. 20. A film comprising the homopolymer or copolymer ofethylene of claim
 13. 21. A process for the production of films, saidprocess comprising extruding in blown film production the homopolymer orcopolymer of claim
 13. 22. The homopolymer or copolymer of ethylene ofclaim 13, wherein the polymerization is carried out in the presence of asupported, titanized chromium catalyst and a supported, nontitanizedchromium catalyst which can be prepared by a process in which aspherical, spray-dried support material is treated as described in stepsB) to D).
 23. The homopolymer or copolymer of ethylene of claim 13,wherein the polymerization is carried out in the gas phase.